“There was never a theme” month concludes with a bit of vintage ‘70s comedy from France. I'm Shy, But I'll Heal (original French title: Je suis timide mais je me soigne). The film is a standard throwback to the days when “lovable loser gets the girl” is a common theme, instead of “sex pest stalks an innocent woman and ends up with a restraining order.”
I'm Shy, But I'll Heal – The Film
A poorly socialized hotel clerk sees a beautiful woman while on the job. He sets out to stalk her from town to town, spinning a web of lies to gaslight her into a relationship. Oh, wait, sorry… I mean a quirky man, shy and unlucky at love, encounters love at first sight and sets out on a charming, funny odyssey to win the girl of his dreams.
I'm Shy, But I'll Heal – The Furs
Mimi Coutelier plays Agnes, the lady unlucky enough to have caught the eye of hotel clerk Pierre. Agnes enters the scene wearing this full-length lynx-dyed fox fur coat and matching hat.
She even opens the credits with a freeze frame of her wearing the hat and being ogled by a mini, animated version of the protagonist (clearly ‘inspired' by the animated intros to the Pink Panther films).
Agnes later departs the hotel in a different coat, this one a full-length coyote fur. Both coats are rather brief, and this is the only time we see the coyote fur.
Next in Agnes' wardrobe is this coat with a thick blue fox fur collar. She's wearing it while reading a book on some rocks near the sea, as was very common in the ‘70s. At least when you want a comedian in a pontoon boat doing a bit nearby.
The lynx-dyed fox makes another, sadly brief appearance in a very similar fashion to the original. Agnes is photographed and then whisked away quickly.
Finally, we have this raccoon fur ensemble, a stroller coat, and a matching hat. You'll be seeing this the most, as Agnes is engaged in a conversation with a romantic rival while, you guessed it, a French comedian is doing some charming stalking nearby.
There is only a little fur in this film, but the furs that appear are fabulous. Bonus points for the film's use of hats, which is not quite so common. Proper accessories are always a welcome addition to any fur ensemble. The fox, coyote, and raccoon are all very nice pieces and actress Mimi Coutelier makes a believable subject for “Love at First Sight.”
- Fur + Feather Runtime: approx 02:13 minutes
- Film Runtime: 90 minutes
- On-Screen Ratio: 2.46%
Find-a-Fur: I'm Shy, But I'll Heal, 1978
(All times are approximate and are affected by the cut of the film.)
- 03:40 – lynx-dyed fox hat + coat
- 11:25 – coyote coat
- 30:55 – blue fox collar
- 54:30 – lynx-dyed coat
- 1:08:15 – 1:10:05 – racoon stroller coat + hat
- 1:12:15 – ”
Fur Fashion Gallery – I'm Shy, But I'll Heal, 1978
